Ann Lichens Park, USDA-NIFA,(center, with President Kira Bowen and Immediate Past President Mary Palm) is a 2019
Fellow of The American Phytopathological Society (APS). This honor recognizes
distinguished contributions to plant pathology in one or more of the following
areas: original research, teaching, administration, professional and public
service, and extension and outreach.
1.
What area(s) of molecular plant-microbe interactions do you feel your
work has impacted most?
When I first started working for the U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) in the early 1990’s, genomics was just
beginning to infiltrate the agricultural sciences. By the late 1990’s, only a small number of agriculturally
relevant microorganisms had been sequenced. From 2000 to 2009, along with colleagues at the National Science
Foundation (NSF), I administered a Microbial Genome Sequencing competitive grants
program that supported the sequencing of well over a hundred agriculturally
relevant microorganisms. As a National
Program Leader at USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), I
have a “bird’s eye view” of the leading edge of plant-microbe
interactions. It has been thrilling to
see how the work supported in the Microbial Genome Sequencing Program has
advanced both basic and applied science related to plant pathology and to
interactions between plants and beneficial microbes. It has turned plant pathogens that were very
difficult to work on into “model systems.” More generally, it has been a
privilege to be able to observe the impact of genomic sciences on agriculture.
2.
What advice do you have for young scientists aspiring to achieve the
level of science that has major impact?
Whether a young scientist’s research is
basic, applied or both, she or he should keep in mind the work’s potential to
improve people’s lives. The connection
between a scientist’s work and the people who benefit from it may be direct or
indirect. It may benefit people by
improving the health of the environment in which we all live or the other
creatures that share our environment.The work may have impact in the short-term or in the long-term. Keep thinking about how that impact might be
achieved.
3.
When you were a postdoc, what had the largest influence on your decision
to join NIFA (CSRS)? Was there a “hot topic” that you considered researching
instead?
I enjoy focusing on the “big picture” and
my job allows me to do that. Molecular
biology and genomics have always been areas of science that have captured my
interest. It is fascinating to learn
about the clever ways that plants and microorganisms overcome the challenges
that they face in order to survive.